The Kiss Is Back

Terrorism may grip Iraq, Syria and Yemen. Climate change is forcing Texans to build arks. And we’ll likely all be roasting by July. But in the shadows and on the open sidewalks of Aix-en-Provence, couples once again are locked in those ever-lasting embraces. The ones frozen in space and time. Those affirmations of passion from the heart for all to see.

I’ve witnessed these moments of amour at dusk and in full daylight. Among the young and those looking for a lasting (if not a last) love. I’ve seen them applied with dramatic flair and earnest effort.

Yes. The kiss: It’s back.

Last year, when we lived here in Aix, I had my fears for this country I so enjoy. It’s true, the French were eating fewer croissants and baguettes. The quality of bread was in decline, several bakers told me. Express signs had cropped up in restaurant lunchtime windows, a sure sign that the slow lane of two-hour Provence lunches might soon be on life support. The new Monoprix in Aix featured rows of snack food and frozen pizza. And while the bridges of Paris were weighted down with locks expressing eternal love, just where was the public proof?

L’amour had hide — no hidden — if simply not died. Even France’s president couldn’t get things right, arriving at his girlfriend’s side on a putt-putt motorcycle. But please.

Now spring is in the air. And love. And long lingering kisses, for all to see (and perhaps capture on a YouTube video?). Sure signs, no doubt, that the world has not yet gone off its axis.

Alas (sigh) my love is 3,000 miles away tonight.I guess tomorrow I’ll have to settle for a walk down la rue.

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3 Replies to “The Kiss Is Back”

Enjoying your latest adventure – again vicariously. Fun to picture students in the same classrooms I sat in -ones I would not have known about without your blog. We still hope to spend some extended time in Aix, living as locals, and would not have considered that before reading your postings. Perhaps some years in the future your students will return full of memories of this, their first immersion, into France life and culture!

I just discovered your website and have been reading it all morning. We are thinking of a prolonged trip to France and I wonder if you have an earlier blog of your first travel to FR i.e., planning, medical, language, etc. We are in our late 60’s and want to take a final trip to EU to enjoy the culture, food, arts and the people.
Thank you for creating a great website of information and pictures.
Dianne

Hi Dianne, Glad you enjoyed it. I’ll send you a private email with my personal email should you have specific questions. This is my only blog in France though I’ve blogged about France before this for Huffington Post.

About the Author

I’ve never measured a successful trip by how many destinations I can circle on a map or check off a Bucket List. To me the best journey, and the best ravel, moves more like a good conversation. It ebbs and flows. It rarely rushes, but it’s also animated and unpredictable. It is filled with banter and laughter, and invites participants to linger rather than march forward inexorably like a tightly wound clock. Want to have dessert? A second glass of wine? A detour in a back-alley artisan’s shop? A pause at an overview by the side of the trail? Why not. Read more.